How Directors Can Help Inexperienced Talent Move Naturally on Film

Learning how to work with talent is a skill that takes years to hone. In the corporate world, casting talent can range from setting up auditions to hiring actual employees to play roles.

Employees can give the video a realistic charm, but when they aren’t trained actors they may have problems moving naturally on camera. Even an inexperienced actor who nailed the audition could have a rough time on set.

So how do you break them out of unnatural movements?

1) Start with the Basics

Regardless of whether your talent is having a difficult time acting out a scene or giving an interview, one fantastic technique to try is to distract them from the fact that they are on camera. It takes a lot of patience to grab your talent’s attention and keep them focused.

Calmly distract them with a basic task if they are acting in a scene or via conversation if you have them giving an interview. The more comfortable and calm your talent, the better the performance.

2) Association Games

Association games are a common exercise in many acting classes. The director or scene partner gives the actor a basic statement that the actor immediately makes an association with, ultimately giving off a specific reaction.

Take your actor aside before you shoot and try it. For example, if you want to inspire energy or happiness in your actor, tell them to visualize their favorite dessert. If the end goal is frustration, tell them to visualize being late for an important meeting. You’ll see the emotions starting to build up inside of them, providing physical reactions reflected on camera.

3) Playable Actions

Try giving them specific and direct objectives to focus on. With actors, you never want to give them an ‘end goal reaction’; in other words, don’t tell someone to “be upset” or “be happy” – give them a playable direction. Think of verbs, such as “you want to comfort them,” or “ignore them,” etc. If the action is coming from an organic place, they’re more likely to move and act naturally in front of the camera.

4) Hire Professionals

If you aren’t going to be on-site for your shoot and the success of your project counts on easing inexperienced talent into natural movements, you can always hire the right crew to manage the job for you. They will provide a proven Field Producer to give useful redirection and can coax the most impressive performances from employees who have never been on the other side of the camera before.

How do you know you’ve chosen the right experts to rely on? Give Crews Control a call. With years of experience under our belt, we can ensure all of your ‘crewing’ needs will be taken care of, no matter what location you have to film in. Your videos will be sharp, realistic and compelling to your target audience. Call us at 1 800 545 CREW for more information, or request a free quote. Don’t forget to connect with us on Facebook, Twitter, LinkedIn.

About Becky Holzman Garzone

Becky’s done everything from pulling cable to producing nationally aired TV shows, so she understands the needs of our clients to have the perfect crew for the job! Due to her love for travel and learning about other cultures, Becky enjoys hearing the wonderful accents of our many crews and clients. It’s been said that Becky knows ‘just about everyone in English speaking countries’ so now she’s learning Spanish! And be sure to ask her about her numerous stints in front of the camera too! (But don’t mention her addiction to Chick-Fil-A and un-sweet iced tea!)

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